Stem Cell Therapy for the Kidney?

Abstract

The kidney has a remarkable capacity to regenerate after injury, as it is not a terminally differentiated organ. This regenerative potential is somehow incomplete, however, and as the insult continues, progressive and irreversible scarring results in chronic renal disease. Dialysis and organ transplantation are nonspecific and incomplete methods of renal replacement therapy. Stem cells may provide a more efficacious method for both prevention and amelioration of renal disease of many etiologies. Although many reports have claimed the existence of renal-specific stem or progenitor cells isolated and characterized by various methods, the results have been diverse and debatable. The bone marrow stem cells seem to play a minor role in renal regeneration after acute ischemia in mice through transdifferentiation and cell fusion, but their immediate paracrine effects result in considerable improvements in renal function. Therefore, as in stem cell therapy for the heart, bone marrow-derived stem cells show promise in regeneration of the kidney. Although more research is needed in the basic science of renal regeneration, clinical research in animals has demonstrated the versatility of stem cell therapy. The first phase of clinical trials of bone marrow mesenchymal cells in protection against acute kidney injury may begin shortly. This will enable further exploration of stem cell therapy in renal patients with multiple comorbidities.

Mesenchymal stem cells as therapeutic tools and gene carriers in liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma

“…Bone marrow-derived stem cells have been shown to participate in the regeneration of different tissues and organs, such as bone, 68 skin, 69 liver, 70 kidney, 71 heart, 72 spinal cord 73 and muscle. 74 Moreover, murine MSCs could be found in the bone marrow, spleen, thymus, kidney, brain, liver, aorta, muscle, lungs and vena cava.…”

Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor Prevents Kidney Infarction and Attenuates Renovascular Hypertension

“…Additionally, pretreatment with G-CSF attenuates renal ischemia/ reperfusion injury, and this cytoprotection seems to be associated with its anti-apoptotic action [8]. 144 Even though the kidney has a remarkable capacity to regenerate after injury, progressive and irreversible insults result in chronic renal disease [9]. However, little is known about the potential of G-CSF in protection against permanent kidney injury.…”

Mesenchymal Stem Cells

“…These reports were validated a few years later (Liechty et al, 2000, Fukuda, 2001, 2002. Since then, MSCs have been used as regenerators of heart, skeletal muscle, nerve, liver, kidney, lungs, and pancreas (Burt et al, 2002, Lardon et al, 2002, Bonafe et al, 2003, Dabeva and Shafritz, 2003, Abedin et al, 2004, Kim et al, 2004, Jain et al, 2005, Sonoyama et al, 2005, Goncalves et al, 2006, Zubko and Frishman, 2009, Reinders et al, 2010.…”